4/10/2005: A royal stroll (past the toilets sign)
I know the latest royal wedding was a less than formal affair, but it isn't often you see this much royalty traveling together in a herd, let alone on foot. Under a sign pointing to "Toilets".
It's good to see Prince Charles looking happy, and Camilla (now Duchess of Cornwall) surprised her critics by wearing not one, but two designer outfits the fashionistas approved of, each topped off with a hat springing feathers tipped with crystals.
Now that those two are taken care of, it'll soon be time to turn the spotlight onto the next generation for royal shenanigans and scandals, and Saturday's spring outing gave us a chance to see their newly grown-up faces. We know William and Harry; here's a who's who of the others:
left to right: Charles' new stepkids Lara & Tom Parker Bowles; Princess Anne's daughter Zara Phillips; Prince Andrew's daughters Eugenie and Beatrice (their lookalike mom Sarah Ferguson didn't attend); and the one I'd put my money on to cause a stir if she sticks around, Tom Parker Bowles' girlfriend Sarah Buys
Ironically, it wasn't all that long ago that Charles' great-uncle Edward VIII gave up the crown so he could marry the woman he loved, Wallis Simpson. Well, technically he was never crowned - he'd only held the title of King for 325 days when he abdicated in 1936 and his brother - Queen Elizabeth's father - became King George VI.
In one of the great love stories of modern times, Edward gave up the title and the many perks of heading up the British Monarchy because his American bride-to-be was divorced. Twice. At that time it just wouldn't do for the head of the British Empire (and it was still an empire then) to marry a divorcée. He chose the woman over the throne; they married and lived happily - outside of England - until Edward's death in 1972. Wallis died in 1986. If social conventions had been different then and Edward been allowed to reign with Wallis as his queen, who knows how different things might have been for Britain and for the world?
Seventy years or so is just a blink in terms of royal history, but things have changed drastically in that time: Camilla Parker Bowles has also been divorced. Her ex-husband was one of the 30 or so guests at Saturday's wedding.
